Untamed

The reason this book exists (the reason I exist) is because of the people listed here who, each day, breathe my art—and me—into existence:

ABBY: If you’re a bird, I’m a bird.

CHASE: You Are Our Family’s Knowing.

TISH: You Are Our Family’s Feeling.

AMMA: You Are Our Family’s Imagination.

CRAIG: For loving our children so masterfully, for trusting me to make art about our new family, for your humor, forgiveness, and relentless goodness.

MOM, DAD: For the patient courage that helped me find and keep myself and the love of my life. For trusting me as I learned to trust myself. I vow to give your grandchildren the same gift you give me: to live both held and free.

AMANDA: The great luck of my life is to call the kindest, bravest, most brilliant person on Earth Sister. Everything good in my life is born from that original luck. My sobriety, my family, my career, my activism, my joy, and peace: It’s all because you walk in front and beside and behind me. I am because of you.

ALLISON: Your artistic genius is woven into every word written in here and spoken out there. All of it is ours. Thank you for directing so much of your talent, dedication, loyalty, and friendship my way. You are pure Gold.

DYNNA: Thank you for your brain and your heart, for your steadfast devotion to our mission and sisterhood, and for sending us to the moon.

LIZ B: Countless women and children’s lives are changed because you see them, believe them, and work so relentlessly for them. I have never known someone to use her One Life with more beauty and impact than you use yours. Thank you for being Together Rising’s heartbeat.

OUR TOGETHER RISING VOLUNTEERS AND WARRIORS: Katherine, Gloria, Jessica, Tamara, Karen, Nicol, Natalie, Meghan, Erin, Christine, Ashley, Lori, Kristin, Rhonda, Amanda, Meredith, and Grace—for tirelessly forging that bridge between heartbreak and action. And to Kristen B, Marie F, and Liz G—for investing your exquisite trust in our work.

WHITNEY FRICK: For being the champion, advocate, and ambassador of my work for a decade. For believing when the ideas are invisible, and for tirelessly working to help them become real.

MARGARET RILEY KING: For your tenacity, vision, humor, wisdom, and friendship.

JENNIFER RUDOLPH WALSH: For trusting in our unseen order until it became a nationwide dance party.

KATY NISHIMOTO: For your love and loyalty, and for being the quiet genius behind so many true and beautiful things.

UNCLE KEITH.

EVERYONE AT THE DIAL PRESS AND RANDOM HOUSE: For devoting your talent and passion so fully to Untamed, especially Gina Centrello, Avideh Bashirrad, Debbie Aroff, Michelle Jasmine, Sharon Propson, Rose Fox, Robert Siek, Christopher Brand, and the late legendary Susan Kamil. And to Scott Sherratt, for making our audiobook magic. I am elated to be on this team with all of you.

LIZ G: For being the Patron Saint of Untamed, a goddamn cheetah, and a believer in magic and freedom and women and me.

KARYN, JESSICA, ASHLEY: For calling me friend even though I don’t leave home or text back.

KAT, EMMA: For showing me what it looks like to never become tamed in the first place.

Here’s to The Untamed:

May we know them.

May we raise them.

May we love them.

May we read them.

May we elect them.

May we be them.